1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods for enhancing the morphology, tone, texture and/or appearance of the skin and/or hair of mammals by topically administering, or otherwise applying, effective amounts of a Meadowlactone having the chemical structure set forth herein, as an active ingredient, thereto.
2. Background
The skin and hair of mammals often become damaged or deteriorated as a result of sun exposure, exposure to chemicals, age, illness, abuse and/or similar factors. In order to eliminate or diminish lines, wrinkles, sun or age spots and/or sagging of the skin, many human beings apply a wide variety of skin care products to their skin, inject Botox (a highly purified preparation of a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum) into their skin and/or have plastic surgery (laser surgery, face lifts, eye lifts and the like). In like manner, many humans apply a variety of shampoos, conditioners and/or other haircare products to their hair in order to diminish or repair damage, dryness or deterioration of the hair, which may be caused by chemical treatments (perms, highlighting, coloring and the like), age and sun exposure. The foregoing treatments are often very expensive, and can present significant health risks to the humans, including death.
The water content of the skin stratum corneum (the outermost layer of the epidermis, or external skin surface) and surface lipids are important factors in the appearance and function of the skin. A disruption in the balance between the skin stratum corneum and surface lipids may lead to a clinical manifestation of dryness of skin. The content of hair lipids is also an important factor in the condition and appearance of hair.
The integrity of the skin and hair depends upon the continued production and maintenance of structural and active biological materials, the configuration and function of which are largely dependent upon the local environment in which they exist. This environment can be defined, in part, by the quantitative balance of oil and water in the skin tissue or hair. A primary challenge for those who strive to provide effective skin or hair care treatments is a development of ingredients and formulations that facilitate a preservation of the correct balance of lipid and aqueous components in the complex layers that comprise the epidermal surface of the skin or the outer surface of the hair. A frequent use of surfactants on a mammal's skin or hair often has a detrimental effect of stripping away, or otherwise reducing, a significant amount of protective lipids from the skin or hair, which disadvantageously enables an evaporative loss of water and a consequent dehydration of the skin or hair.
It would be beneficial to provide inexpensive, safe and reliable methods for enhancing the morphology, tone, texture and/or appearance of the skin and/or hair of a mammal without using one or more surfactants (or similar chemicals), other harsh chemicals, Botox or plastic surgery.